Trailer Rear Hitch Mounted Bike Carrier

[pteck]

So I'm looking to add a bike carrier to my 27FB Airstream.

I'm familiar with the "approved" methods such the Fiama rack in the rear, or Arvika over the propane tanks. Neither of these are for me as they both are proprietary solutions that I can't relocate to use on the tow vehicle alone when when we arrive at our destination.

I've heard the general sentiments about a rear mounted hitch bike rack. I'm really looking to testing that assumption - to custom mount a rear receiver to the trailer. I know there's general considerations to avoid too much weight at the rear for reasons of sway and frame/shell integrity.

I believe I can add a hitch, and use a lightweight/stiff carrier to mount two bikes: a lightweight tandem, and another hybrid bike. While keeping the load as close to the shell as possible and mounting the hitch in a fashion that spreads the load over the rear of the frame, rather than just the rearmost bumper.

It'd be useful to hear any stories of concern, failure, or what not to do.

[Flying tulip]

George Hernandez out of NY installed a receiver that comes out of the rear bumper to take my 1upusa bike rack. No problem with weight or damage to trailer but some damage to bike rack. Next time my trailer is at George's shop I will have him stiffen it a little more .

[OTRA15]

As long as you don't exceed a total weight of 77 lbs., incl. hitch fabrication and bikes, you should be fine IMO, assuming also that you can keep the center of gravity of the added weight in the same approx. location as the Fiamma rack, relative to the rear axle. [over the rear bumper storage area]

Threads to read about sway issues incl. excessive weight:

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f48/...ec-153984.html
http://www.airforums.com/forums/f238...ay-152451.html
http://www.airforums.com/forums/f238...ay-156615.html
. . . [See Post #94 for the OP's description of this roll-over]


In my personal opinion, if you have a rear awning, the weight should be deducted from the allowable 77 lbs. total for the bikes/rack/etc..

Good luck,

Peter

[pteck]

Originally Posted by Flying tulip

George Hernandez out of NY installed a receiver that comes out of the rear bumper to take my 1upusa bike rack. No problem with weight or damage to trailer but some damage to bike rack. Next time my trailer is at George's shop I will have him stiffen it a little more .

I was planning to use a new model 1upusa rack coming out this Dec. What issues with the rack?

[pteck]

Good points.

Gotta keep the weight of the hitch/rack/bikes minimal, and as close in as possible to minimize COG change. There's some hitch add-ons that are 100lb in itself. Since I have a welder and lots of fab tools, I'll do what I can to keep the weight down, yet engage more points in the frame.

I had rented an airstream a few yrs ago, that had a custom added hitch. I used that one with 2 bikes just fine without affecting stability one bit.

On my current 27FB, I will also have a Honda eu2000 generator mounted above the battery box. So a bike rack will likely restore balance, and not move the COG too far back.

[Flying tulip]

1upusa is an amazing bike rack, and works perfectly on our SUV . We carry up to 3 mountain bikes 2 adult 1 kids maybe 75 lbs total. Rock solid on the SUV but 28ft further back , and we can see it on the rear view camera, it bounces a lot when you hit pot holes etc. George made it so we can remove it in the future, but I think that feature makes it a little soft. Therefore I will have him redesign it with more bracing. The damage was a little hold back bracket that bend and had to be replaced $40. The bike rack also has fold up feature that I don't use so I might also have that welded solid(not the tilt feature)

[Daquenzer]

I put a hitch receiver on the front of my pickup. A number of reasons this works out great:
1) Putting the bikes on the back of the trailer means they are bouncing around a lot. We have fairly heavy ebikes so the Fiamma was out.
2) Having a regular hitch and bike rack means when we stop that we can put the bike rack on the back of the pickup and go where we might want to bike without dealing with the AS.
3) It really isn’t a problem looking over the bikes. It might be an issue if you have to drive at night. We have done that and then just put them in the AS since we weren’t sure how they would affect lights,etc.
4) We have 2 bike racks and if we need to carry 6 bikes we can; 2 in front and 4 in the back.

This might not work with your vehicle. But this was our best solution.

[OTRA15]

It is easy to overthink this IMO, and conclude you have it all figured out. Please read the threads linked earlier, especially the Quebec Rolllover thread. Sway can happen quickly and for reasons least expected.

If your assembly is over 77 lbs. you raise the risks. Having a gen on the tongue actually will INCREASE the likelihood of sway during the dynamic motions of your rig on the road. Conceptualizing this as a simple matter, of one weight counterbalancing the other, actually demonstrates the trap of thinking you have it figured out IMO. Yes, in the limited up and down static sense, they do counterbalance. But in motion at 70MPH it is a whole new ball game, and those two weights equally far away from the trailer’s center of gravity will actually promote sway, not dampen it.

This has all been discussed ad nauseum in those other threads, so I won’t go on.

Good luck!

Peter

Over and out.

Originally Posted by pteck

Good points.

Gotta keep the weight of the hitch/rack/bikes minimal, and as close in as possible to minimize COG change. There's some hitch add-ons that are 100lb in itself. Since I have a welder and lots of fab tools, I'll do what I can to keep the weight down, yet engage more points in the frame.

I had rented an airstream a few yrs ago, that had a custom added hitch. I used that one with 2 bikes just fine without affecting stability one bit.

On my current 27FB, I will also have a Honda eu2000 generator mounted above the battery box. So a bike rack will likely restore balance, and not move the COG too far back.

[pteck]

Peter, thanks for those links and I appreciate the discussion. I have definitely followed those threads with interest previously, and indeed they are relevant to this discussion. I'm not taking any of this info lightly and have weighed it in my consideration.

Outside of this bike rack, I've taken many steps to ensure stability of my rig. Load E tires on my SUV, uprated tires on my trailer, custom shortening stinger on my hitch, tailored the lashup and weight distribution bars, brake controller bias and boost, and most importantly, applying good driving practices for an articulated vehicle.

By now, you might suspect that I'm an engineer, and I get paid to overthink "systems". It's good from my perspective to overthink, hence this thread.

Unsure where you got the explicit 77lbs from, but I absolutely agree with the idea that it should be kept light.

I don't completely agree with the statement that additional tongue weight will increase sway during dynamic motions. Perhaps what your saying is that the increased polar moment of inertia once sway has set in, might apply additional lateral force that needs to be damped which is true. But it's also true that sway or lateral motions are harder to induce on a trailer that has a higher moment of inertia.

What's also true is that more tongue weight brings COG forward of the axles (where you want it). Which is why the caution to putting too much weight at the rear. Ballast at the front directly keeps this "balance" in check to keep COG forward, which is a primary variable to sway.

[OTRA15]

Thanks for the reply. Yes, "additional lateral force" . . .

Not sure where the 77 lbs. came from [a Fiamma or AS page someplace, as I recall], but you clearly are weighing things carefully!

Good luck,

Peter

[OTRA15]

PS -- Here is the page with the Fiamma bike carrier:

https://store.airstream.com/product/...kes-by-fiamma/

This unit weighs 27 lbs. and has a capacity of 75, so the total weight would be 102 lbs., a much higher figure which gives you some breathing room.

I think there is an Airstream page [maybe in your owner's manual?] which says that the Fiamma carrier is the only approved one.

Cheers,

Peter

PS -- See also: https://rv-pro.com/news/airstream-pa...p-bike-carrier

Colonial AS -- "only approved bike rack" : https://www.colonialrv.com/blog/airstream-bike-rack/
. . . [which is based solely on the weight IMO]

[trumpetguy]

I installed a receiver to the front of my truck. Works great.

[GeocamperAS]

I’ve seen plenty of pictures with the Fiamma rack with 2 bikes. Is anyone else concerned that the taillights are obstructed. I’m not one to be in the fast lane. Other drivers are usually tailgating me before they have an opportunity to pass. If they can’t see my brake lights before they rear end me it’s my fault.
The license plate is also blocked from the camera type tolls.

[pteck]

Peter, thanks for those references. Much appreciated.

In regards to a TV front mounted hitch, I'll agree it's greatly functional. The front hitch could be handy as well. The aesthetics engineering part of me won't let me do it.

Flying tulip, 1up is in transition and has a redesigned rack coming in Dec. Wonder if it'll have a stronger bracket, especially since they allow for expansion to 4 bikes (not that I would do that at the tail of the AS). It sounds like the takeaway that you touched on is that it's important to mount the hitch/bike rack securely, and reduce the bounce to the degree possible. As flexibility and motions here are magnified by it's position relative to the axles.

[m.hony]

I also installed a front receiver on my pickup.
$100 from Amazon.

[tujeeze]

Originally Posted by OTRA15

As long as you don't exceed a total weight of 77 lbs., incl. hitch fabrication and bikes, you should be fine IMO, assuming also that you can keep the center of gravity of the added weight in the same approx. location as the Fiamma rack, relative to the rear axle. [over the rear bumper storage area]

Threads to read about sway issues incl. excessive weight:

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f48/...ec-153984.html
http://www.airforums.com/forums/f238...ay-152451.html
http://www.airforums.com/forums/f238...ay-156615.html
. . . [See Post #94 for the OP's description of this roll-over]


In my personal opinion, if you have a rear awning, the weight should be deducted from the allowable 77 lbs. total for the bikes/rack/etc..

Good luck,

Peter

Thanks for the info Peter. I have a frame mounted spare tire carrier mounted on the rear of my 08 Classic and it well exceeds the 77 pounds because it carries 2 spares. I just purchased this trailer and am wondering if I should remove it. It’s not attached to the bumper but bolted to the frame. I would send pics but the app I’m using won’t allow it. Is there a email address I can share these pictures with you to get your opinion?

[OTRA15]

If the assembly is over the revised weight calculation of 102 lbs. in Post #11, you should probably consider removing it IMO. Also, guessing it projects further rearward of the bumper vs. the Fiamma, thereby throwing the weight away from the rear axle? Also a no no IMO.

I would prefer not to email, as your description of the setup seems clear.

Thanks,

Peter

[Tom_T]

There is a topic on here about a guy in the LA Area using a Swagman bike rack made for trailer use on a 16' or 19' Bambi, which is worth looking at. Sorry but I don't have his topic link anymore, so do a search on here.

One thing to be aware of is that any bike rack used on the back of the trailer must be rated for such use, since there are more forces & movement on the back of a trailer, as compared to the back of your TV (or front). They are stronger for that reason.

You can use a trailer rated rack on your TV, but not a regular vehicle mounted rated one on your trailer. Unfortunately I had to can my plan to use my Fiamma "Swing Daddy" rack for our `88 VW Vanagon Westfalia, which swings away to open the rear hatch - but it's not rated for trailer use.

Only Certain ones are trailer use rated, Swagman makes one, & Fiamma actually makes several - the tall rear face mounted one often seen on ASs, & a couple of folding arm & fixed arm versions. Go to eTrailer & look for their articles on recco's for them, or email them for a list of them and the trailer rated bike racks.

Also - with this 77 lb. limit being thrown around .... before you throw around a limitation like that, you need to cite the source of it (or for any other specification like that), since it could be hearsay which could be too high or too low. It can't just be "I read it on the net" type of info, and be useful to somebody.

Good Luck!
Tom
///////

[OTRA15]

Originally Posted by Tom_T

. . .
Also - with this 77 lb. limit being thrown around .... before you throw around a limitation like that, you need to cite the source of it . . .
. . .

See links and revision @ 102 lbs. in Post #11.

[Flying tulip]

If memory serves me right my 1upusa is rated for trailer use but only for 2 bikes, so adding my 3rd rack+bike I'm over my limits and warranty